Beef Stew Seasoning Mix (Easy McCormick Copycat)

You’ve got the stew meat browned, the carrots chopped, the potatoes peeled — and no packet. It happens to everyone eventually, and it’s a genuinely annoying moment, because beef stew seasoning mix is one of those things you only remember to buy while standing in the kitchen without it.

Good news: you almost certainly have everything you need already. This copycat McCormick beef stew seasoning mix takes about five minutes to stir together, makes exactly one packet’s worth, and tastes so close to the original that nobody at the table is going to ask questions.

I built this one straight off the label. McCormick’s Classic Beef Stew Seasoning Mix lists its ingredients as cornstarch, salt, onion, sugar, spices (paprika, black pepper, thyme), tomato, hydrolyzed proteins, caramel color, citric acid, and xanthan gum. Ingredient lists are ordered by weight, so that order tells you almost everything — and this recipe follows it exactly, right down to onion outweighing the sugar and the sugar outweighing the paprika. That’s why it tastes right instead of just tasting fine.

Why Make Your Own Beef Stew Seasoning?

• It’s cheaper. A packet runs about $1.50–$2.00 and weighs 1.5 ounces. Made from spices you already own, a batch costs pennies.
• You control the salt. The packet carries roughly 550mg of sodium per serving. This version hits about the same by default, but you can cut the salt in half and adjust at the end — something you flatly cannot do with a sealed packet.
• No hunting for it. Stores stock this seasonally and it disappears in October. Your spice cabinet doesn’t.
• It’s cleaner. No caramel color, no hydrolyzed corn gluten, no anti-caking agents. Same flavor, shorter list.
• You can batch it. Make six packets’ worth in the same five minutes and never think about it again.

What’s Actually In McCormick Beef Stew Seasoning?

Here’s the packet, decoded — and what we’re using instead.

On the label	What it’s doing	What we use
Corn starch	Thickens the stew into gravy. It’s the #1 ingredient by weight.	Cornstarch
Salt	Seasoning, and a lot of it	Table or fine sea salt
Onion	The savory backbone	Onion powder
Sugar	Balances the salt, rounds the tomato	Granulated sugar
Paprika, black pepper, thyme	The actual “stew” flavor	Same three
Tomato	Depth and a little acidity	Tomato powder (or paste — see below)
Hydrolyzed corn gluten, soy protein, wheat gluten	Umami. This is the savory “meatiness” that makes packets taste like packets.	Beef bouillon powder
Caramel color	Makes the gravy brown. Purely cosmetic.	Skip it — or a drop of Kitchen Bouquet
Citric acid	A whisper of brightness	Pinch of citric acid, or a squeeze of lemon at the end
Xanthan gum	Keeps the gravy from separating	Optional pinch

The one to pay attention to is the beef bouillon powder. Those hydrolyzed proteins are doing heavy lifting on the label, and if you leave the umami out, your stew will taste like seasoned water with beef in it. Bouillon is the honest home-kitchen swap.

Ingredients

Everything here makes one packet (about 5–6 tablespoons, equivalent to one 1.5 oz envelope).

• Cornstarch: Thickens the gravy, so do not reduce it.
• Salt: Matches the packet’s flavor; see notes for reducing it.
• Onion powder: Use onion powder, not onion salt.
• Granulated sugar: Adds a touch of sweetness and balances flavors.
• Paprika: Use sweet or regular paprika, not smoked paprika.
• Beef bouillon powder: One crushed beef bouillon cube works too.
• Tomato powder: See the substitution notes if you need an alternative.
• Black pepper: Coarsely ground black pepper gives the best flavor.
• Dried thyme: Crush it between your fingers before adding it.
• Garlic powder: Adds extra savory flavor to the stew seasoning.
• Celery seed: Optional, but adds an old-fashioned stew flavor.
• Citric acid: Optional, for a subtle tangy flavor.
• Xanthan gum: Optional, for glossy, packet-style gravy.

How to Make It

Step 1: Measure everything into a small bowl. A jar works too, but a bowl and a whisk break up clumps better.

Step 2: Whisk for a solid 30 seconds. Cornstarch loves to hide in pockets. Keep going until the color is completely uniform with no pale streaks.

Step 3: Use immediately, or transfer to a jar. Label it with the date and “= 1 packet.”

That’s it. Five minutes, tops.

How to Use It (One Batch = One Packet)

Stovetop Beef Stew

The classic method, and the one this blend is tuned for.

1. Toss 2 lbs stew beef (cut into 1-inch cubes) with 3 tablespoons flour until coated.
2. Heat 2 tablespoons oil in a Dutch oven over medium heat. Brown the beef on all sides — work in batches, don’t crowd it. This is where the flavor comes from; give it the full 8–10 minutes.
3. Stir in the full batch of seasoning mix and 3 cups water. Scrape the browned bits off the bottom.
4. Bring to a boil, cover, reduce heat, and simmer 45 minutes, stirring now and then.
5. Add 5 cups cut-up vegetables — potatoes, carrots, celery, onion. Simmer another hour, until the beef and vegetables are fork-tender.
6. Too thin? Whisk 1 tablespoon flour into a little cold water and stir it in. Simmer 5 more minutes.

Total time: about 2 hours. Makes: 8 servings.

Slow Cooker Beef Stew

1. Brown the beef first if you have ten minutes — it makes a real difference. If you don’t, skip it.
2. Add 2 lbs beef and 5 cups vegetables to the slow cooker.
3. Whisk the seasoning mix into 1⅓ cups water until smooth, then pour over. Toss to coat.
4. Cover and cook 8 hours on LOW or 4 hours on HIGH. Stir before serving.

Note the water: the slow cooker version uses much less, because nothing evaporates under the lid. Use 3 cups here and you’ll get soup.

Instant Pot Beef Stew

1. Sauté mode, oil, brown the floured beef in batches. Cancel.
2. Whisk the seasoning mix into 2½ cups water; pour in and deglaze thoroughly — every browned bit off the bottom, or you’ll get a burn notice.
3. Add vegetables. Pressure cook 35 minutes on HIGH, then natural release 10 minutes.
4. Sauté mode for a few minutes to thicken if needed.

Substitutions & Notes

No tomato powder? Use 1 tablespoon tomato paste, stirred in with the water rather than into the dry mix. Or 1 teaspoon of crushed sun-dried tomato. In a real pinch, skip it — you’ll lose some depth but the stew still works.

No beef bouillon? Use 1 teaspoon Better Than Bouillon (stir into the liquid, not the dry mix), or swap the 3 cups water for 3 cups beef broth and cut the salt in the mix to 1 teaspoon.

Vegetarian? Mushroom bouillon powder plus ½ teaspoon nutritional yeast gets you a genuinely good savory base.

Lower sodium? Drop the salt to 1 teaspoon and use low-sodium bouillon. Salt the stew at the end instead — you’ll likely use less overall.

Gluten-free? The mix already is, as written. Just coat the beef in cornstarch or a GF flour blend instead of wheat flour.

Want it browner? The packet uses caramel color for looks alone. A few drops of Kitchen Bouquet or Gravy Master at the end does the same thing. Honestly, a proper hard sear on the beef gets you most of the way there.

Want it richer? Deglaze with ½ cup dry red wine before adding the water. Not authentic to the packet, much better stew.

Storage

Store in an airtight jar in a cool, dark cabinet — away from the stove, which is where most people keep spices and is the worst place for them.

• Best flavor: 6 months
• Still fine: up to 1 year

The cornstarch keeps it dry and free-flowing, so clumping isn’t usually an issue. If it does clump from humidity, break it up with a fork before using. Give the jar a shake before each use, since the fine cornstarch tends to settle below the heavier spices.

Make a Big Batch

Multiply everything by 6 for six packets’ worth, about 2 cups total. Use 5½ tablespoons per batch of stew (that’s ⅓ cup plus 1½ teaspoons).

Tape a strip of paper to the jar reading “5½ Tbsp = 1 packet.” Future you will be grateful.

Frequently Asked Questions

What can I use instead of a beef stew seasoning packet? This mix — 2 tablespoons cornstarch, 2 teaspoons each salt and onion powder, 1 teaspoon each sugar, paprika, beef bouillon powder, and tomato powder, plus ¾ teaspoon each black pepper and dried thyme. It equals one 1.5 oz McCormick packet.

How much homemade seasoning equals one McCormick packet? About 5½ tablespoons, or one full batch of this recipe. A McCormick packet is 1.5 oz by weight.

Is McCormick beef stew seasoning mix gluten-free? No. The original contains wheat gluten and hydrolyzed wheat protein. This homemade version is naturally gluten-free — just use cornstarch instead of flour to coat your beef.

Can I use this without making stew? Yes. It’s excellent on pot roast, in beef pot pie filling, stirred into shepherd’s pie, or as a gravy base for roast beef. Whisk 2 tablespoons into 1 cup of beef drippings for a quick gravy.

Does this thicken the stew on its own? Mostly. The cornstarch does real work, but the packet directions also call for flouring the beef, and so do mine. Between the two you get a properly thick, glossy stew. If yours is still thin, a flour-and-water slurry at the end fixes it in five minutes.

Why does my homemade version taste flatter than the packet? Almost always the umami. Commercial packets lean hard on hydrolyzed proteins, which are far more concentrated than anything in a home spice rack. Add another teaspoon of bouillon, or use beef broth instead of water.

Can I freeze the seasoning mix? You can, but there’s no reason to. Dry spices are shelf-stable, and moving them in and out of the freezer invites condensation, which causes clumping.

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